I've been in Ghana for a month now, which is absolutely bonkers to say. These past four weeks have simultaneously felt like two seconds and two years. I can also confidently report that this month has been, and the next three months here will be, the most challenging experiences of my life. Every day brings something new and there have been way too many hoops to jump through to count, but I am grateful for the challenges and experiences because I know I am growing so much as a person. I also appreciate everything I usually take for granted in the United States SO much more. (For instance, reliable WiFi, clean running water, electricity, air conditioning, the ability to cook whatever food I want/get whatever food I want at any restaurant, ease of travel, being able to see my friends and family or at least be in a closer time zone to them, clean air...the list goes on. And this is an important outcome of study abroad, to see your culture and what you take for granted through a different lens, and to recognize the many layers of privilege you possess in your normal life.)
Anyways, here are some updates regarding what I have actually been up to here!
Some of you may know that I was planning to live in a homestay here. I did start out in a homestay, but I switched to the International Students Hostel two weeks ago for a number of reasons. First, one of the main reasons I chose a homestay was that I wanted to be culturally immersed in a Ghanaian family here. However, my host family consisted of two people: my host mom, who traveled a lot and was at work all day until 9 or 10 pm almost every night, and her "niece" who was really her housekeeper. Their dynamic was slightly uncomfortable to navigate, and certainly unfamiliar to me. My host mom also traveled a lot and was at work until late at night, so I felt more isolated than immersed. I felt really lonely at the house because I couldn't see any of my friends and I was usually alone, or just with the housekeeper, who did not seem to want to talk to me very much, likely because of a combo of personality and language barrier. Another reason I decided to move to campus was because public transit proved unreliable, stressful, and time-consuming. I had to walk to a taxi station by myself every morning, find a shared taxi (a cheap, communal taxi), take it to the university gate, then take another taxi onto the university campus. This process could take anywhere from 25 minutes to close to an hour, and if I got to the taxi station too late in the morning, shared taxis had stopped running, so I had to take a more expensive regular taxi or Uber. And, to get home, I either had to navigate three(!) types of public transportation––a tro tro (minibuses that I like to think drive like the Knight Bus from Harry Potter), shared taxi, and Uber, or, as I usually opted to do, spend more money and take an Uber straight to my house. Because of rush hour traffic, getting home often meant traveling for more than an hour, to only travel a few kilometers. And the third main reason I decided to switch to campus was personal safety. I did not feel comfortable walking around the neighborhood alone even during the day because of the aggressive attention I received from men. I have spent time in other countries where I have stood out and received attention for that, so I thought I was prepared, but I have never experienced the level of attention I've gotten here. Off campus especially, I receive constant attention. People absolutely ogle me, and yell "Obroni!" (term for white person) or hiss at me, and taxi drivers will literally turn around so they can drive up next to me and ask me to get in. I knew to expect some amount of this, but the constancy and intensity of it in my neighborhood was too much to handle. (I receive less unwanted attention on campus luckily, particularly because I try to avoid being alone.) I’m really glad I tried the homestay because I wanted to challenge myself, but I am also proud of myself for being able to recognize when I was pushing myself too hard, and working towards a solution to that. Long story short, I live in a dorm now, with a roommate! And it is really fun because there are lots of international and local students, and you can always have a great conversation with anyone sitting at the communal tables in the courtyard. There is a restaurant of sorts right by the tables, and one of the cooks has a two/three-year-old daughter, Blessing, who is always looking for entertainment/trouble. She is the cutest and loves being the center of attention. I will attach a photo of her in the slideshow, don't worry:) There is also a small market and grocery store next to the dorm, where I get my daily 1.80 cedi squeezable ice cream and other food. The 3 cedi egg sandwiches and fresh fruit are personal favorites. I’ve never tasted better mango! (The exchange rate is $1 = about 5.60 cedi.) These places are super convenient and good opportunities to practice my rudimentary Twi. It is so rewarding to watch the vendors smile when I greet and thank them in Twi.
Classes started three weeks ago. I am taking two political science courses (Conflict and Society in Africa and Africa & the Global System), Public Administration, and Intro to Twi, the most prevalent local language. I am also working on my research! Classes are an interesting challenge because the system is, of course, very different from what I am used to at good old Elon. All my classes except Twi, which is just with people from my program, have 150-300 people in them. Very different from Elon :) Grades are 30% midterm, 70% final exam, which is scary. Lectures are once a week, which means it can be hard to retain information class to class, and stay motivated in general. Most classes also have a discussion/tutorial session attached, but those haven't been organized yet, so I will update you once I've been to any! My only homework so far is assigned readings for each week, which I've only received for one class. (Is it weird that I sort of miss homework?) Hopefully on Monday my other classes will have readings posted. I'm not too worried because no one else has the readings either, so it can't be a big deal, right?
In terms of nonacademic life, my program has gone on a couple of trips, and my friends and I have done a couple of excursions ourselves. The program took us to Bojo Beach a few weeks ago, which was a welcome break from the hustle and bustle of campus/the greater Accra area. Last weekend, we did an overnight stay in Cape Coast to go to Elmina slave dungeons. That was an incredibly emotional and intense experience, and one I firmly believe everyone who has the opportunity should do, because it is so so important to acknowledge the atrocities that were committed for hundreds of years, and that contributed so heavily to the success of the United States. The second day in Cape Coast, we went to Kakum National Forest to climb the canopy walk. That was such a fun day, and the most beautiful place I've been so far in Ghana. We were walking on rope bridges, high in the forest, up near the tops of trees. Pictures attached! My friends and I have gone into the capital, Accra, a handful of times, and visited several of the malls the city has to offer. I am looking forward to checking out more museums and markets and other places across Ghana over the next few months! We've also gone to a hotel pool a couple of times, to relax and escape our sometimes overwhelming daily life on campus. A day-cation, if you will. I feel slightly guilty saying that I sometimes need a place that offers me a temporary escape, but I also don't want to lie and say that everything is grand and I love it here all the time, because this isn’t easy.
Some (trivial, or not) things I have learned so far:
- a tiny, pea-sized amount of toothpaste really is plenty. (I finally believe you, mom!) Plus, you don't actually need any water to brush your teeth. Unsure if that is good practice, but it's what we're working with.
- lizards are the equivalent of squirrels here.
- up is down, usually. Don't expect a straight answer ever, from anyone, or an easy solution to anything, ever, and you won't be disappointed.
- ice cream from a squeezable tube is amazing. I eat one almost every day.
- what it actually means to sweat buckets. I have never been hot before I got to Ghana. Never. I take back every time I complained about being hot in the States.
- it is really hard to cut a mango. It is much easier, in fact, to just buy precut mango from the market and hope it doesn't make you sick. (so far, so good!) (I will be sure to update you on how it goes if I ever attempt to cut a pineapple myself, instead of buying it precut.)
- how to make eggs in a pan. You can make anything in a pan, in fact, as long as you have enough willpower.
- I have very low standards for Uber drivers here. I am overjoyed if they roll up the windows and lock the doors when approaching standstill traffic, because I know they are trying to make me feel safer, as men will walk up to the car window, stick their head in, and talk to us: "empress! beautiful lady! marry me! take me to America! what is your name! smile for me! you are so sexy!" and other things that I will not repeat. It is sad when Uber drivers encourage these people instead of protecting their passengers, but alas, par for the course.
- it may be possible to have dirt permanently stuck to your skin. I may literally be carrying a bit of Ghana with me forever.
- I absolutely adore the friends I've made here. One of the best things about doing any study abroad program, particularly a nontraditional one, is you get such an amazing, diverse, interesting group of people. I am so so grateful every day that I have this wonderful group of people to hang out with.
I hope this email expresses some of the ups and downs I’ve experienced in the past month. I firmly believe it is important that I am honest about my experience, because I want to show that study abroad is not always the happiest or easiest, unlike what social media might indicate. I also think it is important to share what it’s like living in a drastically different culture from one’s own, where dynamics are completely shifted. I’m really looking forward to the next three months and all the adventures they have in store for me!
Finally, please look at some pictures I've taken in the past month!!
I hope you all are doing well!! And please let me know if there is anything you are interested in hearing about in my next update :)
Best,
Jane
P.S. don't be offended if you have texted me in the past couple of weeks and I have not responded. I have a Ghanaian SIM card in my phone, so I won't get any of those texts until May 25. Social media or WhatsApp are great ways to contact me, though.
